The Official Phan Guide
by lovephantomperson
Summary: This is your guide to find out what phangirls/phanguys are really like. Chapters explain the different types, levels, and description of the phans.
1. Who are Phans

Hello, and welcome to my readers guide for everything you need to know about phans. To start off I would like to thank Le Fantome Victorien for the permission to use an idea that she came up with. She works very hard to produce stories that I dearly love, and I thought that this guide book needed to move on to describe the other Phangirls/Phanboys.

I do not, nor (unfortunately) will I ever own anything about the Phantom of the Opera. All I want to do is write a guide book about the phans. I do not own IPods, or ITunes, fan fiction, EBay

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Chapter 1: Who/What are Phans?

Phans: People (mostly girls) who have a complete obsession over The Phantom of the Opera. They go crazy over anything related to Phantom in different ways, depending on what type of phan they are and the phan level they have. There are 5 levels of a phan:

Level 1: They've borrowed the movie from a friend/library/Movie rental store and have seen it at least once and enjoy it. They have some songs on their ITunes (most likely Music of the Night, All I Ask of You, and Point of No Return) and slightly know the tune to only the ones they have. They don't talk to their friends about it unless brought up, and they defiantly aren't completely obsessed (they don't even know what a phan is).

Level 2: They own the one disk movie and seen the movie at least 3 times and love it. They have most of the songs, but not all of them, and for the ones they have they know the lyrics by heart. When their bored they will hum the songs until they realize their doing it and sometimes stop. They sometimes bring it up in conversations, but when the topic gets struck down they leave it, not to bring it up again for a while. They like it, so they are slightly obsessed, but not enough to be a Level 3. They have heard of the term phan before but know little about it.

Level 3: They own the 2 disk special edition copy of the movie and looked at both disks several times. They own all the songs and listen to the songs at least once a week and know the lyrics by heart. When they hear Down Once more/ Track Down this Murderer they cry at the end sometimes. They own a Phantom T-shirt, but only wear it around the house. They read fan fictions by other phans, but don't write them with fear that the level four and five phans will yell at them if they mess up. They have only read one book or seen a movie (besides the 2004 version) about phantom. They can bring it up with their non phan friends, but don't hold the conversation for long, but bring it up a lot (which can really annoy the friends). They are obsessed, but not completely. They know that they are phans and are slightly proud of it.

Level 4: They own the 2 disk special edition copy of the movie and have watched both disks so many times. They own and have memorized all the songs, listen to at least one song every day, have the whole soundtrack on their IPod, and even have made some choreography of their own to go along with it. They cry every time they hear Down Once More/ Track Down this Murderer. They own at least one Phantom t-shirt and they gladly wear it to many occasions. They read and write fan fictions and help the want to be Level fours get back on track to where they are or help them become level fours. They have seen a couple of other movies and read a book or two about the Phantom. They sniff out the phans at their school and become friends with them, that way they could talk about phan stuff. They are proud to be phans and they know they are completely obsessed.

Level 5: Level five phans take it to the extreme. They own all the Phantom movies they can find and have a Phantom movie marathon at least twice a month. They collect books that include the Phantom or have a similar story. In their free time they write and read fan fictions. They also find other phans by having a Phan Alliance for their school. They go to EBay to buy phantom style clothes (ex. Cloaks, Victorian style outfits, and masks) and when they have to look "normal" they wear phantom shirts. They will also put on a private show in their room singing and dancing to Phantom (This includes costume, make-up, sets, and dramatic lighting). They watch the stage production at any chance they have, weather it is from an online site or if the production is in town. If they are creative enough they can make little dolls of the characters (from barbies or make them from scratch with felt and fabric) and play with them. Their room has a theme that is, or related to, Phantom (ex. Paris- wall to wall in Eiffel towers and arc de triumph's, with other famous sights). If they are nice, they will help the smaller level people become level fives (hoping for WORLD DOMINATION!)

There are also 4 types of phans that I will go over later in detail. They are:

Phans of the man

Phans of the story

Phans of the music

Phans of the romance

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If you know or have a fan fiction that you think expresses the phans well, please send me the title and author in a review (I will be glad to read them). If the fan fictions you send me are yours please note that I may ask you if I can mention them in this guide. Also if you know any movies, books, song, etc. that remind you of Phantom in any way send me the names in a review and I'll look over them. I will accept anonymous reviews.

Thank you so much... pleases review! I'm always happy to hear ideas from others so feel free to spout out ideas (you will be noted in the a/n if I use your idea).


	2. Phans of the Man

Wow, only 2 day on and this story has had 46 hits. That's 46 more than I thought would be there! Please review, every author likes reviews and reads every one. Don't forget that I will accept anonymous reviews! Also I really would love it if you sent me names of music, books, movies, websites, or fan fictions that I can recommend to others in a chapter later on. Just note that if you are the author of the fan fiction that you are recommending, that I'm going to assume that you are giving me permission to promote it unless you say otherwise. Now I'm happy to present Chapter Two of my little guide.

Chapter 2: Phans of the Man

Does your heart flutter when a tall, dark haired, mysterious man pass you by? Does the description of your dream guy almost match the description of Erik? Do you know who Erik is? If you answered yes to all those you are, what I call, a phan of the man. What this means is that you enjoy the affection that comes from Erik and want him for yourself.

Usually only levels 3-5 are this way because they know the story better and obsess over it more. Levels one and two don't really appreciate Erik that much; they might even love Pretty Boy (Raoul).

Level 3: They like the idea of a dark mysterious man in their lives would be nice. They also dream about going to Paris and look in the Opera house, and take lots of pictures (Trust me; I was this way as a level 3). The man may be romantic to them, but if he looked the way he did, they still wouldn't fall for him.

Love Advise: If possible find a guy who will do anything for you and loves you for who you are rather than social status or by how hot you are. Make sure he is not too mysterious, or else he may have something that he has to hide that you don't want to find out.

Level 4: All they want is a guy who will act just like Erik (without the tantrums) that will do anything for them. They will go to Paris one day _just _to see the Opera House and maybe find some love there. They don't care about how he looks, they just want him

Love Advise: Singing ability, an acting ability, and a drawing/painting ability is a must (Unfortunately not a lot of strait men are like that girls, so be flexible). Doesn't have to look like Erik, but needs to have sort of a dark side. The best guy might just be the actor that plays Phantom.

Level 5: WE WANT ERIK! Not a look alike, not an act alike, _just _Erik. Face and all the guy is a sexy, singing, killing, and creative machine that all the level 5 girls want. When told that he is only a fictional character, we instantly deny it then go off and cry in a corner. When we go to Paris, we go straight from the plane to the opera house, and blow up an inflatable boat, then row (or swim if you don't have a boat) until we find his lair and find him (alive) and just start kissing him and repeat, " I love you Erik!" Unfortunately there are thousands of us and only one of him (He's mine, just saying), so the rest of you will have to go for second best.

Love Advice: Find someone who looks, acts, and sings like him (like I said, if he is alive, he is MINE!) When you do find the man of your dreams, get married on a Phantom themed wedding. Make him wear a mask on your honey moon (he might just like how much more your turned on by him) and live in an artsy area where you will live happily.

If you want me to tell you about how to put on a Phantom wedding, please review saying so, or else I will just forget about it. Review please!

P.S. I know these chapters are short, but they cover the whole topic. If you want longer chapters, jut tell me and I'll try my best.


	3. The Story, the Music, and the Pretty Boy

Thank you for all the comments so far... I try to respond to everyone I can as soon as possible. So this next chapter is going to be three phan types put together. If you have a category in your mind that you would like to see, or a book/fanfiction/movie/song that you would like me to read/listen to/watch, tell me in a review.

I do not own the following: fan fiction, Gaston Leroux's novel, Andrew Lloyd Webber's music, Susan Kay's novel, the INTERNET, and

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Chapter 3: Phans of the Story, Phans of the Music, and Phans of Pretty Boy (a.k.a. Raoul)

Part 1: Phans of the Story

A phan of the story loves everything about the Phantom of the Opera story. They like to read different story's of phantom, as long as they usually stay true to the original story. They read the Gaston Leroux novel, and depending on if they were partly phans of the man, they would either really like it or really not like it. To any phans at all who like the story, I recommend reading Phantom by Susan Kay, it is a novel that tells the whole story about Erik's life in different points of view and follows the Leroux version.

Level 1: Are interested in the story, but will not go out of their way to read a book about it.

Level 2: They checked the book out of the library, probably only read part of it, and are more familiar with the movie version.

Level 3: Read through the whole book and go to fanfiction to read about other peoples interpretations of the story, sometimes they will look up to see if there are any book they would like.

Level 4: Read any version of phantom they can get their hands on. Searched all through the internet, finding more and more books and stories to read. They own the Leroux version and underlined and booked marked their favorite parts.

Level 5: Have 2 copies of the Leroux novel, one all highlighted and one blank so they can give it to their friends. They read all the fanfictions they can find, along with different books, and even go to youtube and watch different movies.

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Part 2: Phans of the Music

They know and love the music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and sing it over and over. They try to see the musical any time they can, even if it is the movie. They tend to be musical themselves, and depending on level, have the sheet music.

Level 1: They know the top six songs of the show: Phantom of the Opera, Music of the Night, Think of Me, All I Ask of You, and Point of No Return. They look the songs up on youtube, but don't own the songs.

Level 2: They know all the songs, but still only have them on youtube.

Level 3: Own only some of the songs, and knows those songs by heart. All the rest of the songs are still pulled up on youtube, or are only seen when watching the movie.

Level 4: Have all the songs, know them all by heart. They might even hum some of the songs when it's quiet and other people are around, but will sing it out loud when their around.

Level 5: Have all the songs, know them all by heart, and will sing all of them out loud not caring about who is near them.

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Part 3: Phans of Pretty Boy

Well, we phans of the man don't really appreciate these people. Don't get me wrong, there are some really nice people who are phans of pretty boy (I will never call him by his first name except in parenthesis), but then again, there are some true Erik phans that get really serious about him. To really describe the fight between phans of Pretty Boy vs. phans of Erik, compare it to the fight between Team Edward and Team Jacob, only better.

There are not many Pretty Boy phans that are over level 2, but if they are over Level 2 they will most likely be phans of the music. There is not really a difference in levels of liking Pretty Boy; it just goes on a range of 1-5, depending on the level you are on.

Love advice: Do you have a best guy/girl friend that will do anything to help you stay the person you are and will also do anything to protect you? Do you think you like him/her? All you have to do to get them is to get singing lessons, upstage the lead singer, make sure he/she hears you sing, then when he/she like you, play hard to get with your voice teacher. After you run off with the voice teacher (and totally ignore the fact that he loves you with a burning passion) go back to the friend and confess your love to him/her and plan to run away. Or, if that other plan is too long or weird for you, just tell them that you like them… a lot.

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As Always, please review.


	4. Phans of the Romance Finding Mr Right

Happy Valentines everyone! I'm so sorry I haven't been updating the phan guide. I just have so much on my plate, that the phan guide doesn't get much attention. If you haven't read my profile, I just posted an email address where you can reach me any time and I also started a blog type thing so you can see the phantastic things I'm up to. So without further ado…

Phans of the Romance and How to Find a Guy Who Won't Mind

In this chapter we will discover the true romance behind phantom, and how to have your boyfriend put that toward your relationship.

Phans of the Romance

They are the people who just love... well the love! The passion just oozes out of this story. Where else can you find a love as passionate as Erik's, or (dare I say it) the kind, and determined love of Raoul? Any phan girl would just love to be swept off her feet by either one. So in truth, any phan of Erik or Pretty Boy are sorta phans of the romance. They're usually (definably level 5 phans of Erik) are hopeless romantics, seriously. One of my favorite things to do is to plan my phantom wedding and watch really gushy movies and read books that are filled over the top with romance that my heart melts like butter.

The hard thing about being a pan of the romance is that there are usually no strait guys that are willing to put forth that effort. Also, we have too many expectations of the men in our live, which is where I get to the second part of the chapter…

Finding a Guy Who Won't Mind 

Sorry to say, but it's tough to find a guy that is perfect for you in the first place. Getting him to except your phandom is a whole other level. You don't want to scare the guy off, but you shouldn't hide it from him. So here is what you do

Level 1: You really don't need to worry just yet. If it comes up though, you might want to say your view on it.

Level 2: You're okay as well. Just don't let a slight obsession freak him out. Also don't talk about it so much that it makes him uncomfortable.

Level 3: Worry a little about how he will take it. Don't bring it up on the first date, but have it come up before he thinks your a total nut job. Really, the best thing to do is do what feels comfortable to you and for him.

Level 4: Follow level 3, but go with these terms in mind. Worry a little more about how he will take it. Do bing it up on the first date, but try to tone down the obsession.

Level 5: Oh gosh... I don't even know how my boyfriend got to accept me. Seriously, he takes in more phantom crap from me than anything else in the world. They are hard to find, but if you find an Erik or Pretty Boy like person, let it go to both of your advantages. Play around with some role play; you will get to feel like your with the real thing, while he gets a little something. When you go out, don't let phantom be the topic the whole time. Don't let the obsession go out of hand and into your relationship... it can start a nasty fight.

But what ever you do, don't forget, if a guy won't love you for who you are and only wants to be with you for, well things... don't fall for any crap he gives you. It's more important to be with someone who will love you inside out than with someone who just totally resembles Erik or Raoul.


	5. The Phantastic Movies

Yes... I know I changed the rating... I really should have had it on T all along. I have been watching the movies for a while now, and I think that all of you sort of deserve a longer chapter...

I have a week off for spring break, so I thought I would watch as many phantom movies as I can. I will go in order by time they were released... If I skipped a movie, tell me in a reply so I can watch it! WARNING! There will be spoilers to all the movies I mention in this segment. I found all these movies/mini series on .

Second of all I need to introduce my nerdy boyfriend, who actually doesn't care about my phantom obsession... so Say Hi to(going to disguise his name so you don't stalk either of us) Tony Spock(he created the name himself!)

Tony:Good morning everybody I can already see what a great crowd we have here today. My super sexy_(Authors note: That part is not true)_ girlfriend has already written much about the lore of Phan-dom. Naturally, not being as accustomed to the Phantom world as you dear readers, I will still make an effort to express an opinion worth your valuable time. Excelsior!

All Right... along with being a Star Wars/ Star Trek Nerd, he is a wonderful movie reviewer... so I have asked him to help me review the movies(in a level 1 standpoint... who listens to all my level 5 crap!)

I do not own any of the movies listed below... I am merely giving a summery and review.

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1925 – The classic. It is the first phantom to ever be portrayed in film history. Lon Chaney is the first Erik to enter the minds of the moviegoers of the 20's. It is closely related to the Gaston Laroux book, except for the end. In the end Erik is chased out by a mob and drowns in the seine river. In my opinion this ending made scene for the story, although I would have enjoyed to see the original book ending into this movie. Overall I give it a 3 out of 5. All true phans should defiantly watch this movie.

Fun Fact: Lon Chaney was mute, and he created all of his phantom makeup (He used chicken wire for the texture of the flesh) Rated G

Phan Boyfriend Review: Although the acting is amongst the finest found in the era of the 1920's period, I feel that some of the pacing could've been better and that it is among the weakest of the adaptations. Still, a worthy try and is certainly worth your time if your Level 3 and up. (_Authors Note:I told you he was a level 1)_

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1943- This story to me answers some very important questions, like how Erik got his disfigurement. It has been a long conflict between phans; some believe that he was born with a hideous face, and some thought he was scared from a fire, made a deal with the devil, or(in this movies case) an acid burn. There was many operatic musical numbers, which I loved because it gave depth to the movie. The Christine had a wonderful voice that gave her character a lot of depth. The Erique(I think thats how they spelled it) was a violin player who was trying to sell his music after he was fired from his job at the opera house. Before he was fired he would pay for Christine's lessons and would secretly treat her like a princess. Raoul and Alfred were both suitors for Christine and they were the comic relief of the movie, with them fighting with each other in order to win her affection. This movie stars Claude Rains and Susannah Foster. 3 stars out of 5. Recommended for level 4-5 phans or Level 3 phans of the story. Rated G

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1962- I heard it was so bad that I refuse to watch it. It stars Herbert Lom as the Phantom. Rated:?

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1989- The very gory and creep like version of the story. It plays with the original story, but this Phantom has a whole different mask. Instead of wearing a mask like all our other favorite Phantoms, he sews the flesh of his victims that he kills(he skins all of them) to make a semi-perfect face. With this story, we also deal with the fact of reincarnation(for the reincarnation of Christine) and deals with the devil.

In the current time Christine Day is trying to find an audition piece for a big opera she is auditioning for and she stumbles upon the work of Erik Destlar. She uses the piece for her audition and then during the audition an accident happens where she is put back in time. The classic story follows(she is in love with Richard, but Erik takes her away and claims her as his own.) but the ending is different. The Masquerade ball is occurring and Erik steals Carlotta away and murders her(he puts her head in soup... which made me giggle) In the fiasco of Carlatta's murder Erik takes Christine away again and this time poor Richard follows her. After fighting against the Police and Richard, Erik kills them all and Christine falls into the mirror again like she did in the beginning of the movie. She wakes up in present day again and she gets the lead in the opera she auditioned for. The composer(who looks strangely like Erik) takes her out to a drink at his place and leaves her alone while he gets ready for a party. He soon notices a little cut on his cheek gives the remark "Damn"(See... Erik is back!) and changes his face again. In the meantime Christine is looking over His music and sees the same piece that she auditioned with, and he walks into the room and reminds her of Everything in the past. She rips his face off(literally) and takes the music and destroys it, thus killing him for good.

I really Enjoyed this movie; It had a beautiful cast, an interesting story, and fabulous makeup(which was needed for the whole face thing). I've seen it alt least 4 times already... So I really have come to enjoy it. 4.5 out of 5, Rated PG-13 for some language and prostitution(yes Erik sleeps with another woman, but he calls the prostitute Christine the whole time... creepy right?) Recommended to level 3 up

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1990(mini-series)- Oh my gosh! This is one of my favorite Phantoms ever! Charles Dance makes one good phantom! All level 3 and up(or level 2 phan of the story... if bored) must watch.

This story starts with the old manager getting kicked out into retirement. Christine is trying to see him in order to get singing lessons, instead she found the new manager(who is married to Carlotta) and is almost turned down. When Carlotta's costume man mysteriously disappears(hmm... I wonder who did that?) Cristine gets a job replacing him. The old manager then tells the new manager about this mysterious phantom and how he must follow every order he issues. The new manager (of course) doesn't listen. After the new manager leaves, the old manager goes through the wall to a secret room and starts talking to Erik about his leaving(they seem to know each other very well). Erik seems sad, but then is startled by the terrible singing from Carlotta. He then sarcastically plans to kill both the new manager and Carlotta( that is why I love this Erik... he is so sarcastic in this one).

After Christine finds a place to stay in the prop rooms, she goes toward the stage and starts to sing. Erik hears her and goes up to investigate. After her song is done he tells her that he would like to coach her voice to become a wonderful singer(in this part he is practically blushing... its so cute). She agrees to his terms of not telling anyone in order to receive her lessons.

The next day the Comte de Chaney invites Christine to go to the bistro(a favorite hangout of all the opera cast/crew) Christine sings at the bistro and everyone is stunned by her voice. After she sings, her and the Comte go out on a little boat ride and they remind each other of how they were childhood sweethearts. The Comte plans on letting their relationship bloom again.

The Opera season has been going on, and Erik has been up to his little tricks with Carlotta and she is so frustrated with it, she agrees with her husband(unwillingly) that Christine should sing _Faust. _Carlotta decides to give Christine these special 'herbs' that would help her with her stage fright and(of course) the herbs made her lose her voice. Everyone starts to boo her, and Erik goes down and takes her away from the shame, they go underground.

While Christine was asleep underground(the poor thing had a rough day) Erik found out that it was Carlotta behind the fact that Christine lost her voice, so he fills a trunk full of rats and dumps it on her... a rat for a rat.

While Erik is above ground, the old manager comes down and tells Christine that she was in great danger. He tells her that he has know Erik since Erik was born, because he was his father. The old manager fell in love with the star of the opera from when he began managing and he got her... well pregnant. The old manager didn't want the baby, so the singer drank a potion that caused Erik to be disfigured. But the singer saw no difference in Erik, and still loved him. After she died, Erik lived underground alone... his cries started the opera ghost rumors, and only the old manager could help him. The old manager never told Erik he was his father, and never planned to. Christine refuses to leave Erik, and stays underground.

Later, her and Erik go on a picnic in a forest that Erik has created. She asked Erik if she could see her face and that she would not look at him in terror. He takes off his mask and she faints. Of course, Erik goes on a raging fit, thinking that she no longer loves him. After she sees his rage, Christine tries to escape, but Erik locks her in a cage. After she escapes the cage, she runs to the Comte(of course she does) and they fled the Opera house. After she sees what she has done to her poor Erik, she begs the Comte to go back so that she can sing to him.

Meanwhile, the old manager goes down to check up on Erik, who seems to be dying of heartbreak. He then tells Erik that he is his father, to which Erik replied that he knew all along... because they had the same eyes. The old manager then tells Erik that he will bury him where no one would find him ever.

Christine sings _Faust_ and to her surprise, Erik comes up to box 5 and they start to sing together. When the police try to shoot at Erik, he runs, taking Christine with him, ant they flee to the roof.

The police and the Comte follow, and when Erik tries to fling the Comte off the roof(i almost cried with joy) Christine begs him not to, and he pulls him back up. The police try to shoot at Erik, and because the old manager promised that he would never have Erik bee seen, he shoots him, and the police let him dye. Christine goes to him and gives him a kiss goodbye.

Yes, that was a long summary. But the show is so good! Everyone level 2 and up needs to watch this! Rating: PG(swear words like damn and hell) My Rating: 9.5/10

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1998- Yes I was warned. No, I did not listen. I know what your thinking, " Now why did she watch this and not the 1962 movie?" I don't know. I have just watched it recently and let me tell you, it was bad... beyond bad. To all you level 4's and down (and level 5's if you are under the age of 16): DO NOT WATCH THIS! It is very sexual and very low quality. Instead of writing the summary, I will tell what was wrong with it:

Erik didn't have a mask. Not like the '89 version, but he wasn't disfigured at all. He had long blond hair(another big no no for the master of the night) He was raised by rats... enough said.

Christine was very bipolar with Erik... one minute she is sleeping with him(YES! It even shows the scene... this is where it met very sexual) and another, she wants to puch his face out, then she cries over his death.

Erik and Raoul become friends at the end(IT'S JUST WRONG!)

It took 7 stabs/shootings until Erik falls dead in the lake. I mean really? We all knew Erik was strangely strong, but... seriously. Not even Erik can do that!

He Sexually Harasses Christine and... wait for it... CARLOTTA! WRONG!

He bites the tongues off of people... a little weird, don't you think?

I could go on and on... but it is so bad, I'm not even going to waste the time to write it.

Level 5 Phans: If you are well over 16 and are bored to death, and want a good laugh/excuse to hit everyone in this movie, watch it. If not, don't even waste your time... it's that bad. Rated R(we all know why that is) My Rating: .2/ 10,000,000.

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2004- OK... to on of the most watched Phantom movies of our time. Starring Gerard Butler and Emmy Rossum, wonderful cast... directing, not so much. The Level 1's and 2's will argue at this point, but any Level 5 can direct a better movie. It's true... Although we could have done a better job, it wasn't done.

The summery for this is... wow, I would think that all of you would know the summary. If not, shoot me an e-mail.

Rated PG-13(for hanging and... well thats it.) My rating: 7/10 As much as I hate the directing, the music is classic and lets face it... Gerard Butler has a very sexy voice. I also think that the whole disfigurement in this story is really crappy and lame.

Phan Boyfriend Review: ABYHSMAL. Joel Schumacher, the lousy son of a bitch. He ruined Batman...now he ruins PHANTOM? THE CUR! ohhhhhh...just thinking about the butchering of characterization and songs makes me cringe. A big shiver from the Phan. Rating: 4/10

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As always remember to review! I'm thinking of doing a comparison of phantoms next... so send me the names of your favorites!


	6. Favorites Including Actors!

Hey guys! Sorry I haven't been writing a lot lately, school and all. So I have decided to tell you more about my favorite things in phantom and also catch up on what I haven't been writing.

_(I do not own any of the following:devientart, Labyrinth, Phantom of the Opera, Sweeny Todd, Moulin Rouge!, any books mentioned in the book paragraph, and anything else that happens to be copyrighted)_

First off, I have a new favorite thing on the internet. It's called Girls Next Door, you can find it on , just search it. I think it is one of my favorite fan based work.  
The story is, what do you get when you have Christine and Sarah(from Labyrinth, which I recommend to anyone who hasn't seen it, watch it now, because it is soooo good) and have them be roommates in an apartment right above Erik and Jereth(goblin king from Labyrinth) Now I must warn all the phans of Erik, that in this comic Christine is still in love with Raoul, but she is still close with Erik. Even if this little fact makes you upset, I still recommend it(he still stalks her if that makes you feel any better)

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Now that I've told you about the movies in the previous chapter, you should know what other unrelated to phantom movies I watch.  
First off, Labyrinth; Watch it now. Deals with wishes going wrong, brothers being stolen, and David Bowie singing and dancing as a very sexy goblin king(and the best part is, he wears very very tight pants!).

Sweeney Todd is a phenomenal musical(almost everything Sondheim is amazing) about heart break, revenge, and cannibalism. If you don't like Tim Burton, then there is a concert version featuring Angela Lansbury you can find online.

Moulin Rouge! is another wonderful love story that stares Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. Its about a prostitute and a writer falling in a forbidden love. Eventually their love is interrupted by an obsessive duke, who tries to defeat their love.

Reading is another important aspect in my obsessive life. I recommend lots of love story's and love triangles, because almost all of us will go for the one with the mysterious dark side. I also recommend vampire books(not twilight) and mysteries. Some of my favorites include: Impossible, Dracula, the Mediator series, anything by Sarah Dessen, and the Vampire Kisses series. I also recommend Gothic romances such as phantom of the opera by Gaston Laroux.  
Fan fictions that I recommend to all are as following(any of these authors are reading this, I would like to say I have loved all of these and I'm trying to read your other fanfictions):

Roses of life, Le Fantome Victorien:a continuation of phantom if Erik never let Christine go off with Raoul. Christine Starts to fall for Erik and they eventually start to develop a more loving relationship.

Stranger Than You Dreamt It, Vampiress Idreal: It all started with a birthday wish to meet the Phantom, Cassandra goes back in time and tries to make sure that the Phantom does not discover heartbreak, but will they fall in love along the way?

Phantoms Beauty, Lady Rosesong: Phantom of the Opera going along with the story line of Beauty and the Beast. Now this author is wonderful(I mean it, I couldn't stop reading her stories. She is a very creative person) but this is the only story she finished. She hasn't updated For two years which makes me very sad, and I would love it if she started to write again

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As promised, a review of all the phantoms in phantom history and the discussion of their make-up. At the very end I tell you the phantom that makes me faint a little.(Note: I did not write a review for all phantoms, but if I skipped your favorite, tell me in a review and I will add it to the chapter later on)

I will go in order by years, so first up is Lon Chaney, who never really said much. Lon Chaney never had anything to go off of in his character except what Laroux wrote in the book. So whether you like him or not, you have to give points for original character portrayal. Also I have heard that he created his own makeup using chicken wire; crazy huh? As far as makeup comes, he did an okay job; I believe that it still looked like a mans face with a couple bumps and scratches. But, you must admit that he did well with the limited amount of special effect makeup that the actors in the 20's had. Overall I give the actor a 5 out of 10, and the makeup a 6.

Phantom from '89- has one of my favorite makeup creations ever, it is really creepy. In the movie( which I mentioned in a previous chapter) he sews the skin of his victims onto his face to mask the exposed skin from underneath. The visual effects on this were so well done, I almost threw up when I saw it at first( I hate scary movies, but I usually can look at the visual effects and be fascinated) I showed it to my theater teacher and she loved the concept.  
Now the acting was like his face; really really creepy. The way he spoke to Christine so possessively... It was more like Laroux's phantom than Webber's. Over all acting- 6 out of 10. Makeup-9.5 out of 10.

Michael Crawford: before I start, I have to say that personally, I don't really like the guy, but I will try to rate him as true as I can. Okay, so Michael was selected to be the original phantom for the Webber version, but did you know he was the second choice? Originally they wanted Steve Harley to play Phantom, who was in the music video with Sarah Brightman. When Crawford was chosen, everyone believed he couldn't do it, because he was a comedy actor on a hit British television show. Another fact I find interesting about him is that he had a terrible temper; if anything went wrong during a show, he would take whoever messed up to his dressing room with them and give them a very angry talking to, while he was still in his makeup.  
Speaking of makeup, here is the review for the makeup in the show. I think it very wonderful, and well made. When I first saw the show as a little girl, I remember being very scared of that makeup(but at that time, I still had a little crush over Raoul). Now as a theater and art student I look at it and think of it like it was an actual piece of art. The makeup stays almost true to the sense of the book in the way it makes him look like half if his face looks like he got out of 100 year old crypt. But because of how Michael's microphone wouldn't work at times under a full mask, they had to make it a half mask(and thus, the half mask was born) so they had to rework the makeup to make it fit the new mask. A thing I don't really like about the makeup was that droopy lip thing below his lips; it would be exposed below the mask, which I think isn't good because Christine doesn't know what's under his mask. Plus the lip thing is there for everyone to see, so it doesn't add to the mystery of what is under the mask. For acting(and singing) I would give Michael a 4 out of 10, for makeup I will give it a 8 out of 10.

Gerard Butler- boy the man is sexy. I mean... Wow. He defiantly added to the sexiness that is Erik. He is the reason why lots of new phangirls are walking toward the dark(Erik's) side. Although he did add the sexiness and his voice and acting were good, the revealing of his face was rather disappointing. All it had was a reddened half face of some puffed up skin. I would have liked it to be closer to the musical version, only on a more movie makeup based area.

Ramin Karimloo: Oh holy yummyness, Have you seen the guy! He is the one I would be happy to faint into his arms. Gerard Butler is sexy in the movie aspect, but Ramin is sexy in the theater area. I found my love for him after I heard him sing for Love Never Dies(yes, I know the show. I was rather disappointed in the story plot, but some of the music is ok!) He is the only man known as playing as all three of Christine's loves; Erik, Raoul(I would be fan of the pretty boy if it happened to be him playing it!) and her father(he was the man in the picture of her father in the 2004 movie). My friends thought I was crazy when talking about this guy, until they saw him in the 25th anniversary of Les Miserables(look it up, good musical) and their jaws were on the ground. I would love to hear him in Phantom, especially Music of the Night and Point of No Return. He is a really good person too, if you listen to him in his Love Never Dies interviews, he talks about how he loves to give back to the phans.

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I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I promice there will be more as soon as summer starts up. Thank you for reading, don't forget to review!


	7. Phantom Fashions

I have been thinking about writing a chapter about phantastic fashions for a while. If you can sew your own clothes, or are artsy in any way, more power to you, you'll like what's in store. If you can't sew at all, I'll tell you what kinds of clothes that can work.

All stores listed below are some of my favorite places to go, please don't sue me for using the names( I am recommending them, I promise)

Note that the clothes I wear are very costumey, and sometimes that is not the style, but I don't care! I think fashion should consist of what the person is comfortable with wearing and helps define them as a person. So to the girls at school that say you are only allowed to wear a certain style and whatever people who seem to shape the fashion of today, screw them! They can't define the individually that is you! Also note that the things I wear listed below are only things I wear to shape my personality more, so if you like to dress the way you do, stick with it! The whole idea of this Phan Guide is to tell you what I like to do, and hope that I inspire you to dig further into your heart and reach a new level of individuality while thinking about what you are really into. So enjoy!

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If your like me( level 4's and 5's will be more like this) you like to set your own fashions in your school/town. I'm known as the girl who looks like a Victorian style romantic, always with a flower in my hair(hair flowers are my favorite!). The main colors I use are black, dark royal purple, rose pink, rose red, creme, and a darker green. In this chapter I will describe modern day phantom fashions(I think while I shop, 'Is this something a modern day Christine would wear') I wear every day from head to toe.  
Now back to hair flowers, they are some of my favorite things in the world; I always have them on my head. If I don't wear a flower, I wear head bands and ribbons(like dark see through lacy ribbon). I get my hair flowers from Claire's, Sam Moon, and Hobby Lobby(they are there, I promise). I am a sucker for roses, but I also like other flowers. If there is a flower I want, but they don't have it, I go to craft stores and get felt, hair clips, some super glue, and some nice fake flowers and ending up making my own. If I feel it needs a little uniqueness, I would add lace, feathers, and maybe some glitter to add a zing. I also buy a bouquet of fake small flowers and glue them on a hair band so I can still have some flowers in my hair if I'm in a rush and need to just brush my hair and put it up. Style wise, I also usually have my hair up in a half ponytail(I have long hair, if you have medium hair it will work too). Sometimes, if I go to a nice event, or feel like sprucing myself up, I will curl my hair in that half ponytail. It just gives it more of a girly feel that is also very Christine like.

Shirts are sometimes hard to find; I go hunting for shirts for almost hours at a time. I like shirts in the same colors mentioned in the first paragraph that are a little bit girly and dressy, but not a lot. Some of my favorite shirts are lacy and have poofy sleeves, and have a fabric that is see through(I like to wear camisoles and undershirts that complement the top layer). I also like to wear jean vests over a plain shirt(with a big hair flower in my head to add the romantic effect) and the vests can add a slimmer effect on some people. I also like corset style shirts(not like what strippers wear, but more moderate) they are very sexy looking!

I'm also not a person who wears skirts all the time(I will if I'm in a really good mood in the summer, or if it's my Point of No Return skirt) but I do wear skinny jeans, all denim colors are good, but I prefer really dark. If you do wear skirts, I like longer skirts that have ruffles in the back that is very costumey.

Dresses are also a wonderful aspect of having phantom fashion! Dark, knee length, and semi poofy are my favorite to wear. I wore a dress like that and it had a bottom layer of dark pink( like it was almost black) and a top layer of see through fabric with flowers sewn up top to my schools phantom of the opera masquerade ball(loved every second of it!) Also, you have probably heard from everywhere you go, every girl needs what is called, a little black dress. I must agree, because it is there when you need it and you can spruce it up with anything that will go for the occasion.

Shoes are, well shoes. They help tie in your whole outfit and keep your feet protected from the dangers in the ground(like the thumbtack I stepped on the other day... That hurt) I normally wear tennis shoes everyday because I have to walk to school, but I love dressy shoes. From heels to nice ballet flats, I just love the way they look on my feet. If I want to wear tennis shoes that are not like the ones I wear everyday, I have a pair of canvas shoes(like converse)that I painted over to make phantom of the opera shoes. They are easy to make, and you can paint just about anything on canvas shoes, acrylic paint works best. If you don't want to paint, you can also write on them with permanent ink. Heels that I like are Mary Jane's, or as I knew them in theater, my character shoes. I wear them with my dresses and when I feel like being casual, but dressy, I wear them with skinny jeans. My pair of black flats are my other favorite, like the little black dress every girl needs at least one pair of black flats in their closet.

Other things like jewelry, purses, coats, and scarfs can also tie the outfit all together in a way that can also help define your individuality. In jewelry, I love cameos; I can't get enough of them. I also like putting antique keys on a chain for my neck, as well as several charms. I also like simple small purses, black clutches are my favorite. I love finding unique coats, but my favorite one is my black dress coat that has coat tails in the back; I wear I with practically everything in the wintertime when its not too cold. Scarves are also very fun to have in the winter, can be fuzzy for very cold weather, or light and casual for the summertime.

Places to go to buy clothes/accessories:  
Craft stores- you can get hair flowers as well as patterns and fabric if you make your clothes  
Thrift stores- has a lot of old clothes for really cheap, you can sometimes find really good stuff there  
Sample sales- I like to go to sample sales of unknown designers. One lady that is a close family friend has two sample sales a year in a big warehouse. She sometimes makes these really unique shirts and jackets, and I buy a ton of them in different colors!  
Costume shops- like I said earlier, I have a very costumey taste in clothes. I sometimes find wonderful skirts(like my point of no return skirt) that are handmade(if lucky). I like more of the handmade costumes than factory produced costumes; to me it makes the costumes seem more like clothes.  
Online stores- they have some really neat stuff online. Just make sure you can return it if it doesn't fit. I only buy one size fits all from online bidding areas like EBay.  
Antique stores- have some really cool jewelry and outfit ideas. I live finding small antiques that I can wear, it feels like I'm becoming part of a story.

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Well summer is here, and I plan to work on some of my other fan fictions while on break. I promise the phan guide is not done for good, only put on hold until I get a brilliant idea for it, or when the school year starts up again. If you have anything you would like to hear about in the future, tell me in a comment. Thanks for following me through this experience so far. I think I really got to think deeper than before and see who I really am, as a Phan and as a person. I promise I will not put this on the back-burner forever! Remember to review the chapter and tell me what you would like to hear about In the future! I'll miss you, but you can follow me through my other fan fic, phantom of the arts magnet( I'm re writing the first and second chapter so it can be better as a whole)! See you relatively soon!


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